


I Am Not Leaving You

by Terr



Series: Prompt Requests [4]
Category: Open Heart (Visual Novels)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-31
Updated: 2021-01-31
Packaged: 2021-03-17 18:48:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,791
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29105103
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Terr/pseuds/Terr
Summary: Ethan finds himself in a need of comfort and Chiara is there to offer him some.
Relationships: Ethan Ramsey/Main Character (Open Heart)
Series: Prompt Requests [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2032390
Kudos: 10





	I Am Not Leaving You

**Author's Note:**

> Prompts: “I am not leaving you” & “If only you could see yourself the way I see you”  
> Set in the Book 2, in the time jump after the gala.

It was 2:54 AM when the sharp sound of an incoming call interrupted Chiara’s already light sleep. All traces of it, however, disappeared the moment her phone started ringing, because _nobody calls at three in the morning to tell you good news._

Cold sweat made her shiver and she felt like her heart skipped several beats when she noticed Ethan’s name on the display. What was happening? He was not working and he knew she wasn’t either. He would never call her knowing that she was sleeping if it wasn’t for something important.

Or serious.

“Ethan?” she picked up, holding her breath and biting her lip nervously. She was a second away from pacing her room.

“Chiara,” her name sounded like the most precious combination of letters that has ever been created in the moment.

There was no sign of panic or alarm in his voice as he breathed her name out, quite the opposite – was it relief? Could it be?

Why would it be?

“Are you okay?” they both asked at the same time.

Chiara decided to be the first to answer, as it became obvious that Ethan called her to make sure she was okay. She was beginning to understand what was going on and her heart dropped at the realization.

“Of course I am okay. I am at home, I was sleeping.”

The air around Ethan felt colder than he remembered from any other January in Boston and he wondered how big a part his feelings, his emotions, his state, played in the illusion?

It was not his most clever idea, to take a walk in the middle of the night. But the scotch was not working and he needed to escape his own mind - hoping to achieve that with the walk.

“I apologize for waking you up,” he said slowly and then, despite hating these moments of weakness, these moments that became more and more present in his life as of late, he dared to ask. “Could I come in?”

There was a long silence on the other side and he cursed under his breath, _this was a terrible mistake,_ and then the door of her building opened and Chiara stood there, in her tank top and underwear, not caring that it was freezing, a sad smile on her lips.

Ethan stepped closer and he despised himself for being so uncertain, for hesitating before he reached out to her and cupped her cheek with his hand.

She took the hand and put a lingering kiss on his palm, the contrast between her soft and warm lips and his freezing skin so sharp he felt like the touch burned him.

It didn’t take him long to realize that he never wished to be burnt until now.

Without any words, Chiara interlaced their fingers together and led him into her apartment and then straight into her room, her expression soft and understanding and Ethan felt like a little boy that found his comfort and he hated that he needed to be comforted.

And he loved it too.

For a moment or two, Chiara felt the urge to ask him _What happened? Are you okay? How long have you been freezing out there before calling me?_ , but she knew better now.

No matter how much Ethan hated to admit it – no, how much _he avoided_ admitting it – under the mask of stoic, stable doctor, there was a man whose life was falling into pieces and he was failing to put them back together.

Chiara’s little encounter with death back in November was the first event that set Ethan off his axis and they both naively believed that it would be the only one, that they would get through it and life would go back to normal.

And then Luise crashed into Ethan’s life again.

And then the gala did not save Edenbrook and it was reaching its end.

Today, Ethan lost a patient. And it was the moment he insisted that Chiara spends her night in her apartment instead of his that she knew. She knew his night would be the one spent agonizing over what was, what is and most importantly, what will be. She knew that he would beat himself up for things he has no power over, but no matter how stubborn she was, Ethan managed to be more.

And so she left with Elijah after her shift and believed she would meet Ethan in the morning.

Just not three in the morning.

There was no point in asking him, because Chiara Ray knew exactly what was going on, just as she knew that Ethan was not okay.

She didn’t offer him a t-shirt as he took his clothes off, even though there were enough of his t-shirts in her room for him to pick up which one he would like to sleep in.

But Ethan hated sleeping in t-shirt almost as much as he hated talking about the emotions overriding him. And so Chiara didn’t offer him any and just quietly laid down next to him, putting her head on his chest.

“I am sorry for interrupting your night again,” Ethan whispered at last, his gaze pointed on the ceiling.

“I am glad you came,” Chiara smiled softly and put another gentle kiss on his chest, feeling his heart beat rapidly under her lips.

“We are going to be alright,” she spoke again after some time. “Not tonight and not tomorrow, but we are going to be alright one day. We are here and we are together and we are okay. I am not going anywhere, Ethan. **I am not leaving you.”**

His grip on her waist tightened, a silent acknowledgment of her words, a non-verbal thank you. It was all Ethan managed.

He knew her words were supposed to be soothing, that they had their purpose, a delightful lullaby of reassurance that should have brought sleep that was not marked by nightmares.

But just as Chiara knew without asking, Ethan knew exactly as much.

Ethan knew that her words carried more meaning that some sweet nothings whispered in the darkness of her room, Ethan knew that when Chiara says _I am not leaving you_ , she means every single part of it.

And it scared him.

Did she realize how much was she putting into his arms? Did she realize the power she was giving him by promising to stay by his side?

The hospital was closing and what was he supposed to do? He cannot – he must not – jeopardize her career by expecting her to stay by his side, no matter what his next choice will be. She had the potential to blossom if only she could find the hospital that is worth her presence. And he cannot stop that.

Ethan could live with Chiara hating him for breaking her heart if it would mean that her career was as successful as it deserved to be. He cannot live with Chiara hating him for keeping her close and destroying her chances of becoming the diagnostician she aims to be.

_What was he supposed to do?_

“Stop doing it,” her soft, sleepy voice interrupted his thoughts and for a moment, he was confused.

“I haven’t done anything,” he defended himself, tilting his head slightly to have a better look at Chiara’s face – her eyes are still peacefully closed and hadn’t she spoken, he would think she was already back to sleep.

“You are spiraling. Analyzing your next steps, drowning in the sea of what if’s and what should’s and I know you think you need to break up with me in order to save my career.”

There was a long silence. Ethan wanted to ask _how do you know?_ , but then he remembered it was Chiara he would be asking and so he didn’t.

In the months of knowing Ethan, Chiara was aware of the ways Ethan’s body responded to his anxiety. She could tell exactly how the fingers on his feet moved rapidly all the time and how a soft gasp left his mouth when an especially strong wave of uncertainty hit him.

“Don’t you ever dare to break up with me because you believe it would be better for me. I am capable of making my own decisions and I decided to be with you,” she went on, her voice sharper than she intended to. “We are not going to solve this whole situation overnight, but even in this moment I know that I want to be part of your life and I want you to be part of mine.”

There were so many things Ethan wanted to tell her. He wished to express his gratitude and he wished Chiara could feel how sorry he was for putting her through so much.

But words stuck in his throat and the only sentence that left him was not even on the list of those he wanted to say.

“I don’t deserve you,” he whispered.

Chiara let out a soft chuckle, the warm breath tickling Ethan’s ribs and despite everything, his lips twitched on the right side, a small smile forming on them.

“Life is hardly about what we deserve,” she whispered back. “Sometimes, we get more than we deserve and sometimes we get less. It is what it is.”

“I don’t think you don’t deserve me, though,” she added quickly, throwing a glance up only to find Ethan staring at her intently. “ **If only you could see yourself the way I see you,”** she sighed but didn’t say anything else.

She didn’t need to, after all. Chiara was the first woman in Ethan’s life that never hesitated to let him know which parts of him she loved and for which she could tear his head off. He knew that in Chiara’s eyes, he was great. Worth love and worth happiness.

In her eyes, he was deserving.

There was another box of untouched thoughts in Ethan’s head and tonight, after he felt Chiara’s breaths getting steadier, he allowed himself to open the box.

Ethan was sure that there was no man, no woman, no person in this world that deserved Chiara. He was sure that Chiara was far too good for mere humans, with their flaws and their sins and their limits, to claim her as theirs.

He was more than sure that he was not deserving of her presence in his life.

But there she was, dedicated to stay, dedicated to show him the world the way she sees it. Dedicated to show him magic, because if Chiara was something, it was magical. Ethereal.

And in the chaos of his uncertainty, Ethan found out that there was one thought that he became certain of.

A frightening one, indeed. But certain.

He loved the woman


End file.
